Flow control valve

ABSTRACT

A valve in which the flow control element includes a fixed disk and a rotatable disk, and a motor operable to rotate the rotatable disk. The motor is disposed in the bore of the valve, aligned with the long axis of the valve body and the axis of rotation of the rotatable disk.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/251,739, filed Aug. 30, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,113,661.

FIELD OF THE INVENTIONS

The inventions described below relate to the field of valves forcontrolling water flow in HVAC systems.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONS

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/457,120, filed Aug. 12, 2014 (U.S.Pub. 2015/0285384 (Oct. 8, 2015) discloses an axially alignedrotationally adjustable flow control valve with an integrally formedVenturi nozzle. The valve comprises a body characterized by a proximalend and a distal end, with an inlet section disposed at the proximal endof the body and an outlet section disposed at the distal end of thebody, and a rotatable disk, rotatable relative to the valve body,rotatably disposed within the bore of the valve and a fixed disk, fixedrelative the valve body, and also disposed within the bore of the valvebody proximate to the rotatable disk. The disks both have apertures, andthe valve is opened by rotating the rotatable disk so that apertures ofthe rotatable disk align with apertures of the fixed disk, and the valveis closed by rotating the disk so that the apertures of the rotationdisk align with solid portions to the fixed disk. A post, secured to therotatable disk, extends from the disk, through a circumferential slot inthe valve body, so that the rotatable disk may be rotated by hand, withan operator sliding the post through the slot to rotate the rotatabledisk relative to the fixed disk.

SUMMARY

The valve disclosed in this application is a motorized flow controlvalve, for use in controlling water flow in an HVAC system, whichcomprises a body with a bore extending from the inlet side of the valveto the outlet side of the valve, a rotatable disk, rotatable relative tothe valve body, and a fixed disk, fixed relative the valve body. Therotating disk is rotatable from the inside of the valve body, via amotor that is encased in the valve body, in the flow path of the valve.The valve may be formed with a straight bore segment, extending from theinlet to the outlet, with the motor or output gear of a gear box drivenby the motor, the rotatable disk, and the fixed disk all alignedgenerally coaxially with each other, and coaxially within a cylindricalbore of the valve body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1 and 2 are longitudinal cross-sections of the flow control valve.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the valve, showing various components ofthe valve of FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 shows an alternative configuration of the rotatable disk and itscarrier.

FIG. 5 is a cross section of the valve, through the region holding thefixed disk.

FIG. 6 is a cross section of the valve, through the region holding themotor and the flow path around the motor.

FIGS. 7 and 8 are a cross-sections of a valve similar to the valve ofFIG. 1, in which the body of the valve functions as the fixed valvecomponent.

FIGS. 9 and 10, which illustrate the open and closed positions of therotatable disk relative to the channels of FIGS. 8 and 7.

FIG. 11 illustrates a version of valve, in which the rotatable disk isdistanced from the motor housing, and the rotatable disk openings areapertures which extend through the rotatable disk.

FIG. 12 shows an end-view of the valve of FIGS. 1 through 3, 7 and 8, orFIG. 11, to illustrate one manner in which the motor well is establishedand isolated from the flow of fluid past the motor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONS

FIGS. 1 and 2 are longitudinal cross-sections of the flow control valve.The valve 1 comprises a valve body 2, characterized by a first end 2 pand a second end 2 d (the valve is bi-directional and flow can passthrough the valve in either direction, so that either end may be serveas the inlet or the outlet, or, correspondingly, the proximal end andthe distal end). Two disks 3 and 4, each with openings such as flutes 5in the rotatable disk and apertures 6 in the fixed disk, are disposedwithin the bore 7 of the valve. Disk 3 is rotatable within the bore, andlongitudinally fixed within the bore. Disk 4 is fixed, bothlongitudinally and rotationally, within the bore. In this embodiment,disk 3 serves as a rotatable valve component and disk 4 serves as afixed valve component.

While fixed disk 4 may have an outer diameter closely matching the innerdiameter of the valve body 2 (or the end cap 19) in the vicinity of thefixed disk, the rotatable disk 3 has an outer diameter significantlysmaller than the inner diameter of the valve body proximate therotatable disk, thus establishing a flow path between the outercircumference of the rotatable disk and the inner wall 2 w of the valvebody. The openings 5 extend through some thickness of the rotatable diskand open to the circumference or side wall of the rotatable disk. Thus,flow through the valve follows the path through apertures 6 of the fixeddisk, through openings 5 in the face of the rotatable disk facing thefixed disk, radially through the radially facing portion of openings 5,between the rotatable disk and the inner wall 2 w of the valve body, andthrough channels 11 (flow may be in either direction).

A motor 8 is disposed in the bore of the valve, in the flow pathestablished by the bore of the valve, with a motor shaft 9 parallel withthe longitudinal axis 10 of the valve (as illustrated, the motor shaftaxis is coincident with the longitudinal axis of the valve body (coaxialwith the valve body), but it may be off-center and parallel to thelongitudinal axis) and/or aligned with the rotatable disk (again, thatis, the longitudinal axis of the motor may be coincident with the axisof rotation of the rotatable disk). The motor may be directly coupledthrough its shaft to the rotatable disk, or it may operate to rotate therotatable disk through a sun gear/planetary gear arrangement connectingthe motor shaft to the rotatable disk, or the motor may operate a ringgear connecting the motor shaft to the rotatable disk.

Flow channels 11, established between the motor 8 and the wall of thevalve body 2, provide a fluid pathway around the motor and through thevalve. The rotatable disk 3 is operably connected to the motor shaft, sothat the motor is operable to rotate the rotatable disk relative to thevalve body and the fixed disk. In this configuration, the rotatable disk3 is indirectly fixed to the motor through carrier ring 12 and mountingpost 13, which is fixed to the rotatable disk 3, and this carrier ringis likewise rotatable within the bore, and longitudinally fixed withinthe bore. The carrier may be formed integrally with the rotatable disk,or the motor shaft, or the rotatable disk may be directly fixed to themotor shaft. The ends of the valve may include mating structures forsecuring the valve to conduits 14 p and 14 d at either end of the valve.

Various components are included to facilitate operation or constructionof the valve. A stop ring 15 may be used to secure the fixed disk in thevalve bore, with locking tabs 16 on the fixed disk cooperating withlocking channels in the stop ring (or vice-versa), and various seals andO-rings may be used as necessary to protect the motor from thesurrounding flow path. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the motor is disposedwithin a well or housing 17, which provides a volume within the bore ofthe valve isolated from the water flow around the motor. The housing maybe open on a side, so that during manufacture the motor may be slippedinto the housing (see the exploded view of FIG. 3), with its shaftinserted into the carrier. If the motor is sealed in its own water-tighthousing, such that it may be disposed in the water stream flowingthrough the valve, the housing need not be provided.

In FIG. 1, the valve is shown in its open position, with the rotatabledisk 3 rotated into position such that the flutes 5 are aligned with theaperture of the fixed disk 4, such that water may flow through thevalve. In FIG. 2, the valve is closed, with the rotatable disk 3 rotatedinto position such that the flutes 5 are aligned with the solid portionsof the fixed disk, and the solid portions of the rotatable disk 3 arealigned with the apertures of the fixed disk 4, such that water flowthrough the valve is prevented. The rotatable disk may be rotated tobring the apertures into perfect alignment to allow full flow, intoperfect misalignment to prevent all flow, or into varying degrees ofoverlap to adjust flow over a wide range of flow rates.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the valve, showing various components ofthe valve 1 of FIGS. 1 and 2. This view shows the outside of the valvebody 2 and more clearly shows the well 17 which accommodates the motor,and the opening of the well to the outside of the valve. The motor maybe powered through electrical wires 18, so that the valve may beautomatically controlled by an associated system. The valve body 2 maybe capped on either end with any suitable means for fixing the valvebody to surrounding piping, including the end caps illustrated, or anyother means such as threaded fittings or flanges, or the fixation meansmay be omitted if the valve is to be welded, swaged, or soldered intoplace in the surrounding piping. The fixed disk 4 and rotatable disk 3are shown in relation to the stop ring 15, which fixes the fixed diskrotationally within the valve body, and the carrier 12, which fixed therotatable disk 3 rotationally to the motor shaft 9. The valveillustrated in FIG. 3 can be made by forming the various componentsseparately, and trapping the several components within the valve bore,in which case provision of the carrier and stop ring make assemblyconvenient. The stop ring may be omitted if comparable means for fixingthe fixed disk is formed integrally with the end cap (or fixed end) 19,and the carrier may be omitted if the rotatable disk is fixed directedto the motor shaft. Also, the end cap 19 may serve as the fixed valvecomponent, with apertures and occluding regions provided in the end cap.

The rotatable disk 3 is shown in perspective in FIG. 3, to more clearlyillustrate the flutes 5. The apertures through this disk comprise flutesformed as cutouts in the rotatable disk, in the face that immediatelyabuts the fixed disk or other fixed valve component in which thecorresponding fixed apertures are provided. The flutes are voids in theface of the disk and a corresponding sidewall of the disk, that extendthrough some thickness of the disk and open to the circumference or sidewall of the rotatable disk, but do not extend through the entirethickness of the disk, leaving a plain portion of the rotatable disk inthe proximal portion of the disk (the upstream portion, or the portionthat is opposite the fixed disk or other component with fixed aperturesand proximate the distal face of the carrier ring). This definition ofthe flute will help distinguish apertures that extend only partlythrough the thickness of the disc from apertures that extend entirelythrough the disk. The rotatable disk sits in a void of the carrier 12,and the void is configured to mate with the outer contour of therotatable disk.

The fixed disk 4 is shown in perspective in FIG. 3, to more clearlyillustrate the apertures 6. This disk is conveniently fabricated as acircular disk with apertures 6 formed as through-holes. For ease inassembly, the fixed disk has a generally circular outer shape, with oneor more tabs 16 sized and dimensioned to fit into the correspondingslots in the inner diameter of the stop ring 15. The outer shape of thefixed disk may be any shaped keyed to the stop ring, where a stop ringis used, or it may be formed integrally with the end cap or the valvebody, so that it merely constitutes a disk portion of surroundingstructure.

FIG. 4 shows an alternative configuration of the rotatable valvecomponent 3 and its carrier 12, which may be used in the valve of FIGS.1 and 2, or the following figures. This rotatable valve componentresembles the rotatable disk, but is not a fully formed disc. Instead,the rotatable valve component comprises a rotatable structure sufficientto occlude the apertures of the fixed disk or fixed component. Therotatable valve component 20 illustrated in FIG. 4 includes generallytriangular wings 21 configured occlude the corresponding apertures ofthe fixed valve component. The carrier 12 in this embodiment is shapedto conform to the rotatable valve component 20, such that the rotatablevalve component must rotate with the carrier. Likewise, the fixed valvecomponent can be formed as a fully formed disk as shown in the Figures,but may also be formed with generally triangular wings, andcorresponding circumferentially space gaps, sized and dimensioned to beoccluded by the wings of the rotatable valve component 20. The rotatablevalve component of FIG. 4 may have an outer diameter closely matchingthe inner diameter of the valve body, or it may have an outer diametersmaller than the inner diameter of the valve body but large enough toocclude the apertures 6 of the fixed valve component (or, if used in thevalve of FIGS. 7 and 8, the channels 11 passing the motor housing).

Comparison of the disks of FIG. 1 and the components of FIG. 4demonstrates that, although the rotatable valve component and the fixedvalve component may be formed as disks, with apertures to allow flow,and circumferential contours shaped to mate with surrounding structures,these components can be formed in a variety of cooperating shapes.

FIG. 5 is a cross section of the valve, through the region holding thefixed disk. The surface of the flutes 5 can be seen through theapertures of the fixed disk, and tabs 16, as described above, engageslots in the stop ring 15, to prevent the fixed disk from rotatingwithin the bore.

FIG. 6 is a cross section of the valve, through the region holding themotor and the flow path around the motor. The channels 11 runlongitudinally past the motor 8 and any intervening housing or materialof the wall of the valve body. In this embodiment, the channels areformed by drilling through the length of a solid valve body, and themotor well is formed by machining a void in a solid valve body. Thechannels may be formed by other methods, such as extrusion of the valvebody, and the channels may be merged into a single channel surroundingthe motor well on three sides, or they may completely surround the motorhousing. One method of making the valve comprises machining the valvebody from a solid stock (such as a cylinder), by machining (boring ormilling) the motor well into the side of the cylinder, drilling thechannels 11 from the ends of the stock, drilling the bore 7 from the endof the stock, inserting the motor into the well, inserting the rotatingvalve component into the bore and fixing it to the motor shaft, andinserting the fixed valve component into the bore.

FIGS. 7 and 8 are a cross-sections of a valve similar to the valve ofFIG. 1, in which the body of the valve functions as the fixed valvecomponent. The components of the valve 22 are similar to the componentsof valve 1 of FIG. 1, including the valve body 2, the rotating disk 3,the bore 7, the motor 8 and motor shaft 9, and the flow channels 11 oneither side of the motor housing 17. In this valve, the portion of thebody of the valve which surrounds the motor well serves as the fixedvalve component, and the rotating component 3 is fixed to the motorshaft 9 through the mounting post 13. A fixed disk may be included, butis not necessary in this construction. The openings 5 of the rotatingdisk are apertures that extend through the entire longitudinal thicknessof the valve, and the rotating disk is tightly disposed against theopposing face 23 (shown in FIGS. 9 and 10) of the motor housing. Asshown in FIG. 7, the apertures 5 are aligned with the channels 11, sothat water may flow through the valve. As shown in FIG. 8, the apertures5 are misaligned with the channels 11, and aligned with solid or voidportions of the valve body, and the solid portions 24 of the rotatabledisk are aligned with the channels, to block the channels, so that watermay not flow through the valve. This is shown also in FIGS. 9 and 10,which illustrate the open and closed positions of the rotatable disk 3relative to the channels 11 passing around the motor housing. In FIG. 9,the rotatable disk is shown in a first configuration, rotated relativeto the valve body such that the apertures 5 are aligned with thechannels 11, while in FIG. 10, the rotatable disk is shown in a secondconfiguration, rotated relative to the valve body such that the solidportions 24 of the disk are aligned with the channels 11. The rotatabledisk may have an outer diameter closely matching the inner diameter ofthe valve body, as shown, or it may have an outer diameter smaller thanthe inner diameter of the valve body but large enough to occlude thechannels 11 passing the motor housing.

FIG. 11 illustrates a version of valve 1, in which the rotatable disk isdistanced from the motor housing, and the rotatable disk openings 5 areapertures which extend through the rotatable disk. In this embodiment,the motor shaft 9 or the mounting post 13 are elongated, so that therotatable disk 3 is longitudinally displace from the face of the motorhousing (item 23 in FIGS. 9 and 10). In this embodiment, the rotatabledisk bears against the fixed disk 4, and rotates relative to the fixeddisk to open and close the valve. When in the open configuration, watermay flow through the rotatable disk, from one longitudinal face to theopposing longitudinal face, rather than flowing past the longitudinalface opposing the fixed disk and the circumference of the rotatabledisk, as in FIGS. 1 and 2. The rotatable disk may have an outer diameterclosely matching the inner diameter of the valve body, as shown, or itmay have an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the valvebody but large enough to occlude the apertures 6 of the fixed valvecomponent.

FIG. 12 shows an end-view of the valve of FIGS. 1 through 3, 7 and 8, orFIG. 11, to illustrate one manner in which the motor well is establishedand isolated from the flow of fluid past the motor. This view, lookinginto the bore 7 from the distal end of the valve (the right side inFIGS. 1 through 3, 7 and 8, or FIG. 11) shows the valve body 2, with theend cap 19, rotating disk 3 fixed disk 4 ring 12 mounting post 13removed so that the distally facing face of the motor housing (the endwall of the motor housing) 23 is visible. The motor 8 is shown inphantom, behind the face of the motor housing. The interior side walls25 of the motor housing are also shown in phantom. The motor shaft 9extends from the motor through an aperture 26. The aperture is sealed bythe mounting post 13, inserted into the aperture, as appears in FIGS. 1,2 and 11. The end wall of the motor housing can also be established bythe mounting post 13 in conjunction with the ring 12, as illustrated inFIGS. 7 and 8. The flow channels 11 provide a fluid pathway around themotor and through the valve, while the motor well provides a volumewithin the bore of the valve isolated from the water flow around themotor.

While the preferred embodiments of the devices and methods have beendescribed in reference to the environment in which they were developed,they are merely illustrative of the principles of the inventions. Theelements of the various embodiments may be incorporated into each of theother species to obtain the benefits of those elements in combinationwith such other species, and the various beneficial features may beemployed in embodiments alone or in combination with each other. Otherembodiments and configurations may be devised without departing from thespirit of the inventions and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:
 1. A valve comprising: a valve body having a substantiallystraight bore extending through the valve body and defining alongitudinal axis of the valve body; a rotatable valve component,rotatable relative to the valve body, rotatably disposed within the boreof the valve body, said rotatable valve component having a firstaperture; a fixed valve component, fixed relative the valve body, anddisposed within the bore proximate to the rotatable valve component,said fixed valve component having a second aperture; and a motordisposed within the bore, connected to the rotatable valve component andoperable to rotate the rotatable valve component within the valve body,said motor having a longitudinal axis, wherein said longitudinal axis ofthe motor is aligned parallel with the longitudinal axis of the valvebody; and a motor well, disposed within the bore, wherein said motorwell provides a volume within the bore of the valve isolated from thewater flow around the motor, with the motor disposed within the motorwell.
 2. A valve of claim 1, wherein: the rotatable valve componentcomprises a rotatable disk having an outer diameter smaller than thebore of the valve body proximate the rotatable disk, and the firstaperture extends from a face of the rotatable disk opposing the fixedvalve component to a side wall of the rotatable disk, to establish aflow path between the rotatable disk and the valve body.
 3. A valve ofclaim 1, wherein: the motor has a motor shaft, disposed on a centrallongitudinal axis of the motor, and said central longitudinal axis ofthe motor is coincident with a central longitudinal axis of the valvebody.
 4. The valve of claim 3, wherein the motor well is open to theoutside of the valve.
 5. A valve of claim 1, wherein: the rotatablevalve component comprises a disk.
 6. A valve of claim 1, wherein: thefixed valve component comprises a disk.
 7. A valve of claim 1, wherein:the rotatable valve component comprises a disk having an axis ofrotation; and the fixed valve component comprises a disk having acentral axis wherein the axis of rotation of the rotatable valvecomponent and the central axis of the fixed valve component are coaxialwith the longitudinal axis of the valve body.
 8. A valve of claim 1,wherein: the motor is disposed within the bore such that the motor iscoaxial with the rotatable valve component.
 9. A valve of claim 7,wherein: the motor is disposed within the bore such that the motor iscoaxial with the rotatable valve component.
 10. A valve of claim 1,wherein: the apertures of the rotatable valve component comprise flutes,communicating a face of the rotatable valve component abutting the fixedvalve component to a sidewall of the rotatable valve component.
 11. Avalve comprising: a valve body having a substantially straight boreextending through the valve body and defining a longitudinal axis of thevalve body; a rotatable disk, rotatable relative to the valve body,rotatably disposed within the bore of the valve body, said rotatabledisk having a first aperture; a fixed disk, fixed relative the valvebody, and disposed within the bore proximate to the rotatable disk, saidfixed disk having a second aperture; a motor disposed within the bore,connected to the rotatable disk and operable to rotate the rotatabledisk within the valve body, said motor having a longitudinal axis,wherein said longitudinal axis of the motor is parallel with thelongitudinal axis of the valve body; and a motor well, disposed withinthe bore, wherein said motor well provides a volume within the bore ofthe valve isolated from the water flow around the motor, with the motordisposed within the motor well.
 12. A valve of claim 11, wherein: therotatable disk has an outer diameter smaller than the bore of the valvebody proximate the rotatable disk, and the first aperture extends from aface of the rotatable disk opposing the fixed disk to a side wall of therotatable disk, to establish a flow path between the rotatable disk andthe valve body.